Winding Waters Fishing Report

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Wallowa River Steelhead Report March 25th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:36:00 +0000

Tom had a slow day on the Wallowa Yesterday. The weather was all over the map. Wind, rain, snow, and a bit of sun. He caught one beautiful Hen but that was it.

I am continuously amazed at the difference we have found in the amount of fish being caught between the road section of the Wallowa and the Rondowa section. We are not quite sure what is holding those fish down in the canyon. Maybe the low flows coming out of the Wallowa are not enticing the fish to move up river. They are holding in the bigger water down near Rondowa. The crazy weather could have affected the fish and their interest in biting.

We were sure excited to get down on the Train one last time on Tuesday.

Summer Steelhead Creel Report for March 23rd

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:14:00 +0000

Follow the link below to check out the latest Creel report. Tom is down on the Wallowa today so I will let you know what he finds this evening.

Creel Report Link: Creel%20Report%20March%2023rd%202010.pdf

Steelhead Paparazzi on the Wallowa??

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 16:20:00 +0000

Tom and I went for one final day of Train Access Steelhead fishing on the Wallowa River on Tuesday. Wow, what an incredible day. We caught 15 to 20 Steelhead between us and got sunburned to boot. There was one very unusual aspect to our day. As we stepped off of the train there was this a crowd of people with Huge cameras waiting for us. Paparazzi on the Wallowa? It looks like the Wallowa River Steelhead are experiencing their 15 minutes of fame. So if you head out on the Wallowa this Spring, beware of those flashes coming from the bushes. You may find yourself on the cover of the National Inquirer.

Report from the March 20th Steelhead Train just in

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 20:05:00 +0000

Wow, another day of amazing fishing. I guess our concerns in the upper section of the canyon have translated into some amazing "Catching" in the Roadless section of river accessed on the train.

Tom and his buddy Jake headed straight for Tom's Honey hole and proceeded to catch an "uncountable"amount of Steelhead in that 30 foot section of river. This was his initial report via phone last night but today I nailed him down to a number and he committed to 36 steelhead landed yesterday. The first 2 fish were caught on a Frozen reel. The temps warmed up enough by about 9:30am allowing him to actually use his reel to land the fish. They ended the day in short sleeves.

I just received a call from Tom who is currently guiding a few anglers on the Wallowa. He said that Pat has actually caught his first 3 Steelhead on a fly today.

Happy times had by all, except maybe a few unlucky fish. We wish Jon and his crew luck on their 3 day float from Minam to Mud Creek. I will pass along their report on Wednesday upon their return.

Wallowa River Steelhead Report March 19th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 18:03:00 +0000

We fished the Wallowa again yesterday, March 18th. We found the fishing to be a little slow. The fish did not seem to be holding in the typical water that we usually find them in. They seemed to be on the move and very active. We did notice fish jumping and making their way upriver.

I took a water temp measurement and found that our measurement from the 17th was accurate. The water temp was 49degrees and has been holding. We are thinking that the runoff from last weeks snow event has caused this spike in the temperature. This has in turn energized those fish to get on the move.

The 2 Steelhead that we did catch yesterday were caught in the faster moving water at the top of the runs. The fish were hooked right where the water spilled from the swift riffle into the slower moving run. They seemed to be staging themselves in this water preparing for the big push up through the faster moving riffles.

The train goes out tomorrow so we should get some really good data about the fishing down there tomorrow night.

Let me know what you are finding out there.

Wallowa River Steelhead Report March 17th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:57:00 +0000

I joined Tom and Jake for a few hours of steelheading on the Wallowa yesterday. They had reported catching 4 fish on Tuesday so I thought I better go check it out.

Our concerns about the rapid snow melt blowing out the river have been unwarranted. The water didn't seem to have come up at all and the color was not off a bit. Still clear. All of that snow that has disappeared, from my yard, in the past 2 days must have just gone right in to the ground. Conditions are still looking good. We did take a water temp yesterday and found the water temp to read 50degrees. This was hard to believe so I am going to bring a 2nd thermometer to confirm temps today. I also wanted to report that we saw very little pressure yesterday and were able to get in all of the water that we wanted to.

The fish that we are catching are very active. All of them are jumping and running up and down during the fight. I just got a new helmet cam today and plan on getting back down there to capture some footage. Looks like another short sleeve day in the canyon.

Hope to see everyone on the last Steelhead train of the season.

Summer Steelhead Creel Report for March 16th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:29:00 +0000

The Creel Report is just in. Numbers are still looking good. I have not fished on the Imnaha recently but it looks and sounds like they are really hooking up down there. The report is that there are a lot of anglers down at Cow Creek but if you can find some pocket water to drift a nymph through you have a good chance of hooking up. Happy angling.

Click on the link below to take a look at the Creel Report for March 12-14.

SummerSteelheadCreelMarch16th.pdf

Wallowa River Steelhead Report March 15th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 20:17:00 +0000

Report from the weekend on the Wallow just in.

Saturday was another good day on the Wallowa. We awoke to about 6 inches of snow on the ground in Joseph and were a little concerned about what this low pressure blast would do to the fishing.

Snow was on the ground all the way down to the river. The water was still cold and clear with little of that new moisture making it into the system YET. The folks on the train found that the bite was on right away. They started hooking up first thing in the morning. Around mid morning there seemed to be a little slow down and then it was game on again after lunch. Tom's honey hole provided once again. There were fish being caught out of that spot from both sides of the river. The report was consistent up and down the Wallowa.

We are a little concerned about what this new snow is going to do to the fishing. There is a lot of snow in the lower elevations and with temperatures predicted to be in the 50's this week we could see some major runoff. We can only hope that it will not come off so fast that it muddies the waters. I will keep you posted as the temps rise and the water starts running.

The last Steelhead train is scheduled for next Saturday the 20th.

Wallowa Steelhead Train March 12th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 02:39:00 +0000

Tom just called in the report for the fishing train today. The morning was quite cold and after 2 hours of swinging his fly through the Honey hole he saw no action. Tom then took a break to ride back upriver on the train to coordinate other anglers. He got back to the honey hole at about 1pm and decided to put a nymph on. He tied on a truck and trailer rig with his heaviest Stone fly nymph tied above a Prince Nymph. This is when the fishing turned on. Tom proceeded to catch 12 Steelhead in 1 hour on that same rig. He heard similar reports up and down the river. After the sun got on the water after lunch the fish just turned on and people just started hooking up all over the river. I was concerned that the High winds that we have experienced all day in the valley would have blown them off of the river but this was not the case. The winds were not an issue in the Wallowa River canyon today.

Only 2 more days left on the fishing train, tomorrow and next Saturday. See you down there.

I will post some photos of Tom's fish on Sunday when he has a chance to get up here and share them with me.

March 9th Weekend on the Train

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:30:00 +0000

The Fishing just keeps getting better and better on the Wallowa Steelhead Fishing Train. I also just got myself on the Creel Report Emailing list. Click on the link below to take a look at the report. The numbers are at levels never seen before Yahoo.

Tom said the conditions continue to remain consistent on the Wallowa. Clear water holding right around 37 degrees. Most fish are still being caught nymphing but Tom has also been trying his hand with the Spay Rod and has been catching his fair share on the Swing. Very exciting for this time of year on the Wallowa. See the beautiful Buck above.

March 9th Creel Report
stscreel2010mar9.pdf

Weekend Train Report on the Wallowa

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:31:00 +0000

Another successful weekend on the Steelhead Train. Tom caught the beautiful Wild Hen above on Saturday. We hope this one is able to reproduce in great numbers. He caught her on the Prince nymph. He did however get the Spey Rod out for a bit of fun and ended up catching 2 nice Steelhead on a swinging Purple Spey Fly on Friday. This was very encouraging.

On Friday there was a little bit of rain, in the morning which caused the water to go a little off colored but not enough to affect the fishing. Tom could still see his feet in about knee deep water so he was not concerned about the off color conditions. By Friday afternoon the water had cleared back up and the temp had increased to about 39 degrees from 37. That little flush of new water probably got those fish moving around. That may be why Tom was able to bring fish to the swinging fly in such cold water.

Sunday brought some very warm air temps up in the Valley and a river of water was running down my driveway. I suspect this water is making it into the Wallowa today and coloring it up a bit. We are expecting more warm days this week so this should bring some of that warmer fresh smelling water down to the noses of the Steelhead. I would expect the fish to be on the move this week.

The door to the Hatchery should be opened for business today, so we will begin getting reports from the hatchery on numbers of fish they are seeing along with the weekly creel report. Stay Tuned, and please comment to let me know what You are seeing out there.

Steelhead Fishing Train Report!

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:28:00 +0000

The report is just in from the first weekend of the "Fishing Train". As you can see in the photo above the weather was just perfect. It was a bit cold in the am but as soon as the sun got up it warmed up and the fishing turned on.

There was a mix of Fly Fishermen and Gear fishermen on the Train this weekend. The Gear Guys certainly had better success than the Fly guys. Everyone caught fish, but the big news of the weekend was one guy fishing with a jig and a bobber caught 11 fish on Saturday and 17 fish on Sunday. His success was a result of a couple of things. First of all, he knew what he was doing and knew the water down there very well. The second thing was his ability to fish the deepest slowest water. He said that the fish he was catching were sitting right on the bottom of the slowest moving pools he could find.

This is very difficult water for the Fly guys to fish. It is just a challenge to get your fly down deep enough. This is not to say that the Fly fishermen didn't catch any fish. They had good success nymphing. There was even a few fish on a swinging fly with a Spey Rod.

Fun had by all. We expect the fishing to continue to heat up. The folks down there at the hatchery don't even have the door open yet. They plan on letting the fish in starting March 1st. That tells you that the bulk of the fish have will be here in March.

Friday Feb 19th Wallowa River Fishing Report

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 00:31:00 +0000

I had to go down and see what was going on down on the Wallowa for myself today. Wow what a spectacular day. Another one of those 55 degree sunburn days in February. Doesn't seem right but I am not complaining.

The water has cleared up a bit from yesterday. It is still a little off colored but has more of that nice green color than the brown color. Water temp was back to 37 degrees. Sun was high and bright. We decided to continue Nymphing as that is what has been working. The Wallowa is a tough river to swing due to it's size, especially right now. We tied on our #10 Prince Nymphs and got to work.

Tom and I fished for about 3 hours between 10am and 1pm. There was a little more pressure on the river today. We had to go to Tom's favorite, avoid the crowd, holes that most folks unfamiliar with the river don't fish. Tom was being kind and putting me into the premier fishy zones. He still caught the first Steelhead after about an hour. After a quick break for a snack he directed us to his honey hole and forced me fish through first. I hooked and landed 2 beautiful Steelhead in about 20 minutes. Then after taking a breather and soaking it up I continued up the run and after about 10 casts hooked a third. I did loose this one but not without a good fight and a few jumps.

I would call the fishing great on the Wallowa right now. Get out there and enjoy some of this incredible weather and get a Fish On. It might snow next week and we will have to go skiing.

Wallowa River Steelhead Report Feb 18th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:59:00 +0000

I just got Tom's report from the Wallowa. Tom spent 3 hours down there this afternoon. He found beautiful weather 50 degree air temp and Clear Blue skies. He May have even gotten a sunburn.

The water level has risen a little bit due to consistent warm temps and melting snow pack. He said that he would describe the water as brown instead of green but still very fish able. The water temp is on the rise as well 38 degrees. In his 3 hours he caught a some trout and 2 Steelhead on a Prince Nymph. Tom did notice a few anglers but overall he described it as not too crowded.

Remember the Steelhead Train starts on Saturday. Tom will be on the Train answering questions and helping anglers get into the fishy water.

Valentines Day Report for Wallowa

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 19:45:00 +0000

Tom braved it down on the Wallowa on Valentines Day, hoping the anglers would all be spending the day with their sweeties. This was not the case and he found the river to be a bit crowded. This did not discourage him as he simply went to one of his secret spots. He only had about an hour to fish but in that hour he caught 2 Steelhead on the Prince Nymph. Pretty good hours per fish numbers.

He said that the water speeds had increased slightly indicating a small increase in flows. He did say however that the water still seemed a little low. He also noted the water temps were holding at 37 degrees and were very clear. We are still hoping for a little more warmer water to flow into the system to get the fish moving around a bit more.

The crowds are beginning to show up on the weekends but during the week pressure is very light.

Thanks to all of you who visited us at the Sportsmen's Show last week. We enjoyed talking with all of you.

The Fishing Train will begin this weekend. Call the Minam Motel to book your trip.541-437-4475.

Follow this link to read more detail about the record numbers of Steelhead that are heading this way. This story was Published in the Observer Newspaper and written by Katy Nesbitt.

"Abundant Steelhead Run Benefits More than Anglers"

Wallowa River February 11th

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 00:47:00 +0000

Tom made it out on the Wallowa river again yesterday. He had some pretty good success. Fishing for about 3 hours he landed 2 fish. As always he brought these in on the Prince Nymph. Conditions on the river are still cold 37 degrees clear and still a little low. We would like to see a little increase in the flows to get those fish moving around a bit more.
I just heard from the Folks at the Minam Motel that the Steelhead train is a go. They will be operating the train on the weekends beginning this weekend and ending at the end of March. The fishing should just keep getting better and better. If you are interested in the Steelhead train contact Dawn at the Minam Motel. 877-888-8130

February 3rd Wallowa River Success

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:19:00 +0000

Tom had some good luck down on the Wallowa yesterday (February 3rd). He found some similar conditions in the river. Cold 38 degree, clear, and low water conditions. He was fishing above the hatchery in the obvious Steelhead water. Tom Fished with the Prince Nymph again hooking 3 Steelies and landing 2. The photo above shows a beautiful Jack that he caught.

Tom did say that his creel was checked yesterday. The creel checker told him that he was the first to be checked on the Wallowa, but he did report that the fishing has been very hot down in Troy. I am planning on heading down there on Sunday so I will let you know what I find. The Grande Ronde has been flowing consistently at about 1100 cfs so I am expecting to have some great success. Stay Tuned.

Morgan and I are heading to the Sportsman Show in Portland this week. We will be at the Expo Center in Portland from Wednesday 10th until Sunday the 14th. Stop by and say hello. It should be a great event.

Friday January 29th Wallowa River

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 20:09:00 +0000

Tom made it back down to the Wallowa yesterday. It was a beautiful day and he found a few Steelhead willing to take his Prince Nymph. Water is still clear, 37 degrees and low, so he was forced to search out those deep slow pools to find the fish. He caught a number of Whitefish, and Rainbow Trout and 2 Steelhead on the Prince Nymph. Looks like the fish are in there. A little flush of fresh water will probably set things on fire down there.
The Weatherman is telling us this may happen tonight and tomorrow. We will let you know what happens and if some new water in the system really gets those fish moving around.
Sounds like the Fishing Train is going to happen. After much debate and round and round with the plan for the train I think they have figured out a way to make it happen. I need to correct my previous post regarding the first scheduled train. It will be happening on February 13th. There are still seats available so give the Minam Motel a call to reserve yours today. (541) 437-4475
See you on "The Wallowa".

Sorry Tom was unable to get any photos but there will be more to come very soon.
Come visit Morgan and I at the Portland Sportsman Show February 10-13th at the Expo Center.

Steelhead on the Wallowa

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:16:00 +0000

Well it is about time for the Wallowa to start heating up. Tom went down on the 25th for an exploratory mission. He found what he called a summer like flow ie lower than he expected. He did say that the water was clear and cold 37degrees. After nymphing with the Prince between 11 and 4 pm he only ended up with a Bull Trout, a few nice Rainbows and some Whitefish. He was unable to raise a Steelhead yesterday.
Between now and April 1st you should expect to see at least one post a week. We are going to be keeping a close eye on the Wallowa this year as it should be a great season down there. IF you haven't heard already, the Steelhead Train is on uncertain ground right now. There are some negotiations happening which could affect the train next month. First run is scheduled for February 20th. I will try to keep you posted on the fishing conditions as well as the Steelhead Train Status.
Incidentally, Morgan and I had a great day on the Imnaha last week. Caught a few beauties and enjoyed the warm sunny day. This is a photo of one of the fish we caught on the Imnaha that day.

Another Great Day on the Grande Ronde

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:46:00 +0000

The weather has turned to winter in Joseph but that has not affected the fishing on the Grande Ronde River near Troy. We have about 6 inches of snow at our house and it is a little difficult to still think about fishing but these pictures are a great reminder that it is still happening down there. These guys caught 4 beautiful steelies on Sunday. They were using a Prince Nymph and strike indicator.

The air temperature has been below freezing in the early morning causing some freezing line issues but after about 10am it warms up and the fish turn on. The water temp is still holding in the upper 30's but I suspect with the snow and colder night time air temps we will see this begin to dip into the lower 30's soon.

There is still time left for you to take advantage of the great run this year. The crowds have been slim even on the weekends. Probably due to the area snow as well as Elk Hunting Season. We are not giving up yet.

See you in Troy.

Warm Temps and Consistant Flows, Yahoo!

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:47:00 +0000

With air Temperatures hanging in the 50's during the day, water temps hanging in the low to mid 40's and the water flowing in the mid 900's over the past few weeks the Steelhead fishing has been great on the Grande Ronde near Troy, Oregon. Most anglers that we talk to have been doing a lot more catching than fishing. W are not sure how long these ideal fishing conditions are going to hold on but we are certainly going to take full advantage of them. The crowds have been very light during the week. We have seen very little competition for prime fishing water. Not sure where everyone is but we are happy to have the water to ourselves.

The fishing has been so good this past week that we have seen 3 people catch their first Steelhead ever. 2 of those fish and the happy anglers are seen above. If you have never caught a Steelhead this may be your year. Get down there and give it a go. Hope to see you on the river.

The Bite is On.

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:08:00 +0000

Finally the run seems to be settling in in the Troy area on the Grande Ronde River. Last week we were getting many reports of multiple fish days. 4 to 5 fish were being caught in a day on the fly and double digits being caught with bait. Now is the time. You want to get down there before the water temp gets too cold.

Sorry for the gap in my posts. I have been on the road quite a bit in the past 2 weeks and have been unable to post. Hope to be more consistent for the remainder of the season. Please call or email us for more information.

Challenging Week on the Ronde

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:54:00 +0000

Last week was a challenging one in Troy. The Weather, water temps and flows were highly variable. The Bite was not on for some reason. We did catch a few fish as you can see above. We are still waiting for conditions to stabilize down there a bit. It looks like this week might just give it to us. We have heard some positive reports from the gear guys but very few from fly fishermen.

It was encouraging to see the water temps increase last week. We actually saw them get back up to 50.

Tom is back on the river this week. I will keep you posted as he reports in.

Cold Water Tactics

noreply@blogger.com (Winding Waters) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:25:00 +0000

The water on the Grande Ronde has gone from too warm to too cold in a hurry. With that cold rain and extreme shift in weather 2 weeks ago, we have seen the water temp go from low 50's to 40 and below almost overnight.

The Oregon Grande Ronde top water action has slipped by quickly this year. We are now turning to sinking tips and trying to get down deep to those fish that are holding up in the deep pools. Tom had some success yesterday but only landed a few smaller hatchery Steelhead. He is going to try some nymphing today and see how that goes. The air temps have been in the teens overnight. We are hopeful that as the temperature stabilizes in the low 40's the fish will become more predictable and active.

I will let you know how things go as I get more news from the river. If you are heading to the river this week be sure to bring your sink tips, as well as some Prince Nymphs.